Pirates Out To Plunder B.O. Booty

Last weekend, female terminator Kristanna Loken had Arnold looking over his shoulder. Now he has to watch out for Johnny Depp and the skeleton crew of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl as they set sail to snatch the box office title. Disney’s supernatural swashbuckler opens in theaters across North America today.

Based on a long-standing and popular Disney Land theme park attraction, Pirates stars Depp and Orlando Bloom (Lord of the Rings trilogy) as pirates out to stop a ship of ghouls, led by Geoffrey Rush, bent on lifting an Aztec curse with innocent blood.

The movie is directed by Gore Verbinski, who helmed last year’s horror sensation The Ring. The visual effects are provided by Industrial Light & Magic and animation supervisor Hal Hickel, who oversaw animation on Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones. Also contributing to the atmospheric visuals is Gray Matter FX.

In addition to Warner Bros.’ Terminator 3, Pirates will be up against Twentieth Century Fox’s supernatural effects extravaganza The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, starring Sean Connery, which opens on Friday.

Read about the digital effects behind Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl in the July issue of Animation Magazine.